Things to Look For in a Gaming Chair

Gaming chairs are one of the most popular accessories for gamers. They come in a variety of different shapes, sizes, and colors to suit any gamer’s needs! And it is important to choose the right chair to give you the best posture. The benefits of good posture include more energy, sharper focus, and enhanced well-being. If you’re looking to buy your first gaming chair or replace an old one that is broken or uncomfortable, then this guide will help you figure out what to look for before purchasing one.

Ergonomics 

Back in 2006 came the very first gaming chair that resembled the racing car seat. With the internet flooded with heaps of gaming chairs, we recognize how almost many of them replicate the racing bucket style seats. In order to accomplish their aim of coming up with the most eye-catching chair, they drift off from their main objective of supplying comfort. Keeping gaming chairs enticing without affecting their comfort-giving ability is the most challenging thing for gaming chair manufacturers. Although the racing style chairs fit in your body perfectly, it fails to do so when it comes to supplying comfort in the long run. The ergonomics of a chair is the first and foremost thing to look for in a chair. When it comes to gaming, we spend endless hours entertaining ourselves and competing in battles. Don’t let a chair with poor ergonomics ruin your mood. It’s quite confusing to know whether the chair has fairly good ergonomics or not. Go through the following listed features and assess whether your chosen chair has got these or not.

For a detailed guide have a look at Gaming Thesaurus!

Lumbar cushion 

Starting off with the lumbar support, which is an essential to a gaming chair. The top tier gaming chairs consist of detachable and padded lumbar pillows which can meet the requirements of different body sizes. What basically they do is fit your lower back curve to maintain good posture while promoting neutral positions in which you play. Without it, your upper body will sag forward. It manages to keep you upright while playing games for hours and hours. It fits into your back curve, relieves pressure from your spine and resultantly lower back pain.

Headrest

In the second place, the headrest also plays a major part in comforting users. It promotes blood circulation and keeps the neck in a natural position, so minimal neck pain is derived from computing. Your head can comfortably rest on it, it supports the neck and reduces strain. This also prevents your body from falling forward. Pain in the neck or back depicts the poor posture of the gamer. 

Tilt lock mechanism

The tilt mechanism is an uppermost requirement of a gaming chair. After gaming for a good deal of time, you can rock back and recline at the most comfortable position to relax yourself. Some great chairs enable users to lock at their chosen position to minimize the risk of falling behind while leaning. 

Adjustable

Ergonomic chairs are very adjustable, which means you can modify the chair to the core to satisfy your personal preferences. As everybody’s type is different, no chair can suit all body types unless it offers adjustability. This includes adjustable height that can match with your desk or allow you to sit higher. Customizable and padded armrests support wrists and elbows, which helps reduce fatigue. This helps relieve stress from the shoulders as well as keep lower arms supported. Many chairs offer flip-up arms, so getting in and out of the chair gets easy. 

Waterfall design

This is the must-have feature of an ergonomic chair, we don’t recognize any chair ergonomic unless it has a waterfall edge. Let’s see how it gives comfort and contributes to the betterment of one’s health. As the name suggests, it has a curved waterfall-like edge that suits all body types. The rounded shape of the front edge is designed uniquely, sloping downwards to alleviate pressure from thighs and lower legs while supporting knees. In doing so, this contoured design also improves the circulation of blood. 

Foam

The factor that contributes highly to the comfort of the chair is the foam, a high-quality sponge foam that is soft and plush can keep you very comfy and relaxed. Into the bargain, the density of the foam is directly proportional to the comfort it can give, so the higher the density, the better the chair will be. High-density foams are durable and have a longer lifespan. However, the best foam is the Cold Cure Moulded Foam, the best thing about this is that it keeps its shape. Although it’s hard to know which type of foam has been used under the upholstery. Foam should be of high quality as it’s the foremost element of giving comfort, some cheap chairs use poor quality foam that is uncomfortable to sit on. After extended use, you would start to feel the inner components if cheap foam is utilized.

Build quality

Chairs with awesome build quality can last longer than ordinary chairs; no one wants to waste their money on a chair that is likely to break in a few weeks of use. The higher the price the better the build quality will be, so don’t hesitate in spending extra bucks as it’s far better than wasting them on some trash. One way to check the quality of the build is to know how frames are built, usually those made from durable steel are preferred over the plastic or wooden ones. The foam should not go flat after some use. The base should be wider and sturdier and possibly made of aluminum. The caster wheels should be firm and easy to go on a rough or smooth floor. 

Price factor

Perfect gaming chairs can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars, and that’s where most investors hang back. People just consider moving back from any product with a heavy price tag but what really makes it that pricey, they don’t give a damn about it. Herman Miller chairs are a great example of this, we all know how perfectly built they are, such that they can last for many years and have got almost everything done so well from comfort to features. With that we also don’t want to waste our money especially on features that are already offered by the former chair. You need to research deeply and see whether the chair is even worth it’s price. Sit down calmly and know what features you want in your chair, also do a research to see if those features are offered by other chairs at a relatively lower price.

Upholstery

More than half of the gaming chairs we see on the internet utilize synthetic upholstery. These are divided mainly into three major categories i.e. PU leather, PVC leather or premium PU leather. The best among these is the premium PU leather that is comparatively cheaper than the real leather and manages to keep the quality high even at reasonable costs. To keep quality improved, most manufacturers use premium PU leather in the construction as it imitates the real leather and is cheap. Real leather is the type of upholstery you’ll rarely see in chairs as it’s very expensive. That said, there’s also a mesh material which is breathable and sweat-proof. So if you’re someone living in a hot area or you are a sweaty gamer, consider purchasing chairs upholstered in mesh material. This material has tiny holes that allow air to pass through keeping you fresh and sweat-free during gaming.  

Weight capacity

Many purchasers overlook checking the weight capacity of the chair. Gaming chairs have varied weight capacities, and you need to make sure whether the chair you’re about to buy can bear your weight easily. The weight-bearing capacity is mentioned on the manufacturer’s website. The maximum weight gaming chairs can bear is up to 500 lbs which is especially for big and tall gamers.

Space-saving

For some of you this feature will matter a lot. As gaming chairs are quite large it gets complicated when fitting them in a very tiny gaming room. For this reason, many chairs aid you by boasting space-saving features, such as the foldable feature enabling you to put them away or easily store them when not in use. Also, the size of the chair should be known to you, check the measurements of the chair on the manufacturer’s website and compare to know whether the chair will fit in its respective area. With that, the seat dimensions are crucial as well as if seats are too narrow or wide for you, you’d feel uncomfortable while gaming. 

Other features

Some other features you should look for can be a cup holder or side pockets. Although these feel like some ordinary features but without them a chair seems to be incomplete. A cup holder can help you keep your coffee during gaming sessions whereas side pockets can hold useful accessories in reach of one’s hand. Gaming experience is boosted by great speakers that add realistic effects and the robust subwoofers can almost make you feel it. For high-end comfort, people also look for chairs with massagers that relieves pressure and promotes blood circulation, the massager is placed in the lumbar cushion to lower back pain.

Closing Thoughts 

With so many different gaming chairs on the market, it can be tempting just to buy what looks cool or provides maximum comfort. And while that might work out well for some people, others may find themselves with an uncomfortable and cheaply made product they regret purchasing. The best way to make this decision is by considering your budget and personal preferences, reading reviews, looking at warranties, and getting recommendations from friends or family members who may have already made a purchase. We’ve provided some helpful tips here about how to find the perfect chair; now, all you need to do is follow them!